Weather maps indicate that parts of the UK could experience a deep freeze within days, with temperatures falling to -9C, as a large area of northern Britain may see snow from John O'Groats to Birmingham on Thursday, November 12.
Maps generated by WX Charts on Thursday (October 29) show snow depths of up to 20cm on higher ground in central Scotland. Parts of western Britain, from around Ayr to Barrow-in-Furness, may see up to 1mm of snow per hour by 9am on November 12, according to the maps.
Areas Affected by Snow
In Scotland, the areas where snow appears on WX Charts' maps for November 12 include Highland, Grampian, Argyll and Bute, Tayside, Central, Glasgow, Fife, Ayrshire and Lanark, Dumfries and Galloway, and Borders.
In England, the affected areas are Cumbria, Northumberland, Newcastle, Durham, Teesside, Lancashire, Merseyside, Manchester, Cheshire, North Yorkshire, West Yorkshire, South Yorkshire, Derbyshire, Staffordshire, and Shropshire. Snow also appears in parts of Powys on the same date.
Temperature Forecasts
Maps from WX Charts also show temperatures crashing to -9C in parts of central Scotland at 6am on the same date. The whole of the UK looks set to struggle to get above 0C on November 12, with 2C in London, -1C in Edinburgh, 2C in Belfast, and 2C in Cardiff.
The coldest parts of the UK look set to be in the north, with -4C in parts of Northumberland, -2C in the Scottish Borders region, and -7C in the Highlands.
Forecasters Urge Caution
Predicting snow in the UK is tricky, as slight changes in temperature and air mass can determine whether it rains, sleets, or snows. There is also uncertainty surrounding weather modelling this far ahead, with almost two weeks until November 12, and it is unwise to rely on a single model to predict the weather at this range.
In its current long-range forecast, the Met Office makes no mention of snow. It says there is an increasing chance of more unsettled weather in the second half of November, meaning spells of rain and potentially strong winds. The wettest and windiest conditions are "most likely" in the north and west, while it could be drier in the south and east. It adds: "Overall, temperatures will probably be near or a little above normal for the time of year."
Netweather's forecast for November 9-15 also has no mention of snow, stating there is "no clear signal" for the weather to turn mainly wet and windy during the same week. Netweather says: "It looks most likely to see some ridges of high pressure moving through in between the rain belts, and mostly shallow depressions." Some of these lows may take a relatively southerly track, boosted by remnants of tropical cyclones moving into the North Atlantic, thus bringing rain especially to south-western Britain. Temperatures are likely to be 1 to 2C above the long-term normal for most of the country.
It currently "looks unlikely" that any substantial cold or snowy weather will develop over the following week, according to the same forecaster.
